Milepost

[realfine409]

Got my 2014 copy of the Milepost, spending quality time laying out routes etc. There seem to be a lot of options in terms of campgrounds , parks etc. Being a newbie to this RV lifestyle I need some guidance. Is it really important to make reservations for the entire trip. my reason for asking is that I don't want to spend this trip like a military maneuver "A to B" then move on. If we encounter something really interesting and want to stay a day or three longer I don't want that to ripple through the rest of the trip because we are committed to certain places on certain days. What if the weather delays our ability to see/do something and we hang out for a couple of days to accomplish this. How do you experienced guys do this??

 

[RikDavis]

It's been awhile since we made that trip however we used roadside pulloffs and state or provincial parks. WE never used a private campground, and the only place we made reservations was for Denali where we were able to drive in to the furthest campground where we were required to stay 3 days and catch the bus as it came by for further touring. WE even took the trailer up above the arctic circle.
We did 62 days with no hookups with a a truck with 165K on it at the time (576k now) and a 45 year old Airstream we had rebuilt
WE had no tire or vehicle problems of any kind until we lost a tire tread a couple hundred miles from home.

The trip of a lifetime.

 

[ScottLewis]

It's been nearly 10 years since our trip but we never made reservations except in what we thought would be high use places, and even then only a few days ahead of time. The only time we had to stay in overflow was when the highway was closed for a few days due to fires and Whitehorse became overcrowded with folks who couldn't go any further.
I did have 2 tires on the RV blow out and one on the truck go flat, all in Yukon. Wonderful people up there, someone always stopped to see if we needed help.

You getting Milepost BEFORE the trip was a great idea. We didn't get ours until we got to Anchorage and used it backward on the way home so we missed out on many things on half the trip.

 

[Grizzly]

We made the trip twice without reservations, 95 and 06. We did what RvKDavis did. We stayed in pullouts all the way, except Anchorage, Soldotna and Fairbanks. In those cities we stayed (free) at Fred Meyers, which are Super Shopping Centers. They encourage RV'er to stay there. Some even have potable water and Dump stations. We had an onboard generator for power.

If you have any question, ask away as many TDR members have made the trip and are eager to talk about Alaska.

george

 

[realfine409]

It sounds like I'd better invest in a small generator if I can't get into campgrounds. I do like the independence of not needing to hook up everynite. With just two of us and rationing water we most likely could go 3-4 days without dumping. Sounds like you guys managed that well enough.

 

[RikDavis]

WE have found we generate about 1 gal. per person per day of blackwater (actually it ain't black). WE will dump into a 5 gallon blue tank every 2 days which is light enough to carry to a pit toilet.
We use about 5 gallons of water a day. If we have to get it from a hand pump, or the creek in chicken, we use an extra pump to pump the water into the trailer so we don't have to hold the jugs up. If in doubt give it a shot of clorox and run your coffee water thru a brita pitcher to get rid of the taste.
A small generator is a good idea although our solar panels did the job for us with those really long days.
Many would not use our approach but it has worked well for us for many years and it opens up access to a lot of less used areas.
We are currently in Florida and haven't had a hookup in the last 6 weeks

 

[jelag]

Hi Grizzly...

We've been to Alaska 2 times on the motorcycle and spent the nights in motels... this summer we hope to visit in the RV and dry camp 3-4 nights a week with stops to dump the tanks... I assume you won't need reservations... as travel to Alaska is still down.... my BIL and sister were there 2 years ago and found most of the locations low on census...

We're going to just wonder along... if you intend to take pets... understand the laws going into Canada... geez some pet foods aren't allowed... as well as food in your RV....

In each of our trips we found the experience exciting... we took a flight from Homer by Homer Air across the inlet to some wilderness areas and met a guide... and spent the day watching bears feed in the streams.... we were easily less than 50 ft from them and even thought it was expensive I'd do it again.... Have a great trip..

 

[Grizzly]

Hi Jim,

We're considering a third trip this summer starting in mid July. However it's hinged on a few factors that haven't been worked out yet. We won't be taking any pets because, as you know, we don't have any.

The only reservations we made on our last trip was with Bald Mountain Air Service in the Homer Spit for a trip to Katmai National Park to view grizzlies. We sat on the river bank and were even closer then 50 from the bears as they fished. We will do that again. We had to change those reservations because we got there too early. We also made reservations for an all day tour of Prince William Sound at Whittier and Valdez. That too had to be changed. We made no RV Park reservations.

I'll write more on email Jim.

george

 

[Joseph Donnelly]

Hey George, you might want to take some injection lines, especially #4, 6. And, lots of spare tires! I generally take 2 for the truck and 2 for the trailer on any long trip. I have never gone to Alaska, but it sounds like a great trip.

 

[jelag]

Hi George.... we will of course use the Mile post but our plans have changed...

Well our trip is off.... we were driving down the freeway in the car we keep in our home in AZ.... doing 70 on the way to Tucson for a Cactus Society meeting... the car started to miss and as I pulled over it was dumping smoke under the car and the engine compartment was in flames as I stopped.. car was a total loss.... and it was a nice car, something we'd taken care of and expected another 30K or so miles... that's 5 years in AZ.... so now we have a new car in the drive way.... we've since found this is common for the car we had... lots of internet hits about the exact model and engine lighting off.... fuel line, power steering line or transmission line on the passenger side and dumps the fluid on the CAT and that's all she wrote.... sent a note to the NTSB and the insurance paid us off.... BTW we're all fine....

 

[KL7J]

Got my 2014 copy of the Milepost, spending quality time laying out routes etc. There seem to be a lot of options in terms of campgrounds , parks etc. Being a newbie to this RV lifestyle I need some guidance. Is it really important to make reservations for the entire trip. my reason for asking is that I don't want to spend this trip like a military maneuver "A to B" then move on. If we encounter something really interesting and want to stay a day or three longer I don't want that to ripple through the rest of the trip because we are committed to certain places on certain days. What if the weather delays our ability to see/do something and we hang out for a couple of days to accomplish this. How do you experienced guys do this??

If your coming up in summer and using commercial RV parks, you best get reservations. The RV tours and caravans book in large numbers when they bring a group up here with big blocks of sites set aside and that can make few available to the public. And you may want to travel late in evening as that is when wildlife is out but makes finding a park vacancy more difficult.

If your willing to boondock once your up north a ways from Dawson Creek, then there are lots of areas of gravel pads and river crossings you can overnight. Certain stretches however from Ft Nelson to Watson Lake have only a few areas you can over night boondock (prohibited in Provincial Parks other than developed campgrounds). In Alaska there are many pulloffs. You can easily make a night on battery power but after that if you use the furnace at night (likely) and some reading lights in evening a small generator is nice. Much depends on how many batteries your RV rig has and your use habits. You can try it and run the truck some to charge the trailer up if needed. Generators like a Honda EU1000 or EU2000 are popular.

There are public sani disposal and water sites once you leave Dawson Creek headed north.
Ft Saint John has a muni just before you enter town. Ft Nelson as you are leaving town, next is Whitehorse at the Shell beside the Walmart. After that you likely will want a commercial site and wash the rig in Tok and dump the tanks. Anchorage and Fairbanks have sani sites also.

PM me if you have a question that come to mind. I'm heading down in a week and will return mid May.

 

[Grizzly]

Hi George.... we will of course use the Mile post but our plans have changed...

Well our trip is off.... we were driving down the freeway in the car we keep in our home in AZ.... doing 70 on the way to Tucson for a Cactus Society meeting... the car started to miss and as I pulled over it was dumping smoke under the car and the engine compartment was in flames as I stopped.. car was a total loss.... and it was a nice car, something we'd taken care of and expected another 30K or so miles... that's 5 years in AZ.... so now we have a new car in the drive way.... we've since found this is common for the car we had... lots of internet hits about the exact model and engine lighting off.... fuel line, power steering line or transmission line on the passenger side and dumps the fluid on the CAT and that's all she wrote.... sent a note to the NTSB and the insurance paid us off.... BTW we're all fine....

Jim,

I'm glad all of you are ok through this unexpected tragic experience. Rowdy ok also? I bet you and C are still a bit shaken.

george

 

[Grizzly]

Hey George, you might want to take some injection lines, especially #4, 6. And, lots of spare tires! I generally take 2 for the truck and 2 for the trailer on any long trip. I have never gone to Alaska, but it sounds like a great trip.

Hi Joe,

I don't understand why I need injection lines, #4 and 6. Can you explain that to a lay person?

An Alaska trip is so great that i highly recommend one or two or more trips. On our first trip in July 95 I took two spare tires for the 88, 29' 5th wheel. Used them both and had to buy two new tires on our way back. I had to replace the other two as soon as we got home. No problem with the truck since it was brand new, 95, 3500 DRW. We also had a new 3500 DRW for our second trip in 06 and we had a Lance truck camper on the truck. No extra wheels and tires to cause problems. Our only problem was with the Domatic refrigerator on the 11' 3' truck camper. For the next trip this summer, if we take it, I'll have six new tires on the 05 Dodge. I still like calling it a Dodge instead of a Ram. I'll get the best Michelin tires. I have new Michelin XPX Ribs on the 08 Arctic Fox 5th wheel.

george

 

[DonFitzwater]

Four and six are known to fracture and will leave you in a world of hurt if you don't have an extra. Genos is carrying them now and they are inexpensive.

 

[Shadrach]

Number 4 has been updated twice now.The small bolt that goes thru the isolator and clamps that support the line from vibrating can come loose. When it does the head breaks off the line & it spits fuel everywhere and you are dead in the water - actually the road side I have sold lots of them, but seldom sell # 6. When I rebuilt my 03 engine I changed all the fuel lines. Last june before I drove to Columbus I put on the latest # 4 line. I noticed the clamp was loose on the already updated line. Since 03 didn't have the brace on # 6 when they were built I did that update as well.

Don't be like some people who tell me they will carry the new line as a spare and only change it if they have to. Guess what? It will NEVER break at a good time and when it does your DW will be really mad at you then. Change it in the comfort of your drive way and carry the OLD line as a spare. You might be able to rescue some one else. David

 

[Gonzo 1066]

I installed 180w of solar panels on the roof of our trailer. Have gone up to 10 days without starting the generator.

 

[Killgore]

Gonzo, what kind of batteries are you using? Did you do the solar panel installation yourself?
- Ed

 

[Mark31]

When I went to AK in 07, I heard more than once that there might be a problem with camping/overnighting in gravel storage/pits and other DOT sites because of a nerds dumping blackwater on these sites. It might be worth asking before planning to use these areas. Ain't nothing like an irate LEO that thinks all RVers are the same! Unless there is an official state/province policy, it might vary from district to district. I badly want to go back and see some of those things/places that we just had to pass by because of time limits. Mark

 

[Gonzo 1066]

Gonzo, what kind of batteries are you using? Did you do the solar panel installation yourself?
- Ed

I am using a pair of LifeLine AGM group 29s.. I did the install myself, went down the refrigerator vent to access the power panel. I used Wholesale Solar, they were really helpful with the purchase and Tec for the install. http://www.wholesalesolar.com/RV.html

 

[RikDavis]

WE use a pair of Exide golf cart batteries from Sam's Club with our 250 watt solar system. They are showing signs of age on this trip, however they will be 11 years old in JUne. I attribute the long life to not leaving them on float at the rare times we have electric available.

It has been a few years since we did Alaska, using a lot of road side pullouts. I don't think we even saw a LEO while crossing Canada and very few in AK. In fact so few we were a little concerned about it